My name is Dignitas Qwerdan. I am the author of the somewhat-well-known novel that is The Academy's Regressor.

It was a novel depicting a mortal's repeated reincarnations as he tried again and again to save the world.

The mortal's name was John Ailey. And he had made it his goal to stop his reincarnations the only way he knew it would end: not letting the world be destroyed.

Long story short, he was unsuccessful in his endeavours the first two times.

But however interesting that is, I think the main subject should be me. Because what I just experienced was something I didn't even think possible.

The world, or rather my fans, knew Dignitas Qwerdan as this normal dude who would often interact with his readers during his yearly meetups.

And there, my fans would come to see me, a person of average height, dark hair that spread out both forwards, backwards and in every direction, and the signature smile I would wear whenever meeting with company.

"Hmm… still the same, huh."

I said, staring at my reflection in the window. My overgrown hair had somehow grown longer.

My clothes were a simple buttoned up shirt that was unbuttoned near my neck. And as for below my waist… I was merely wearing the same thing I did on that day. Jeans.

But back to the thing I experienced. On one of my day offs, I was a victim of a hit and run. A masked person who I believed to be one of my readers attacked me.

Why would they do that, you ask? Well, for that, I'd have to recite the entirety of my story.

I suppose I could make it short. So The Academy's Regressor takes place on a planet similar to Earth. Except, that's not its name. I never bothered to identify it, and instead just left it like that.

One day, multiple strange phenomena started happening around the world. Portals of unknown origin spewed out creatures of equally peculiar structure.

Creatures that were only thought to exist in fantasy had made their way to the planet.

Many of these creatures were hostile to humanity, and chose to preemptively attack select human cities and cause massive destruction.

Basically, they were scum.

When the time came for humanity to retaliate, their modern inventions seemed to serve no purpose in elimintating the threat.

Just as it seemed like the world would end, many scientists were able to discover the existence of Mana, an energy that seemed to have been lingering in the planet ever since its creation.

In the story, key individuals were taught ways to harness this power by the scientists. After countless experiments, they were able to devise a way for humanity to take in the mana that floated in the air and convert it into mysterious powers.

Like… a respiratory system, yeah.

"Thinking about it now, that seems awfully similar to what many other stories have. Ah, whatever works, works." I said to myself.

The protagonist, John Ailey, had just finished his second run. Which ended up in complete failure.

Despite this, he was a positive person at heart. He believed he could save the world if he tried hard enough. Stubborn at times, he was.

Multiple series of events unfolded, and John eventually reached his third run, which was this one.

The one I reincarnated in.

I didn't want to believe it, but I had no choice to.

"Guess I should check outside. It'll help me confirm my suspicions."

Finally getting up from my place in front of the mirror, I headed towards the window at the corner of the room beside what I assumed to be my bed.

Weird. Mine, huh? I don't recall owning a bed like this. Why did my brain just tell me it was mine?

Eh. That's for later.

As I pulled apart the window blinds, I was greeted with a magnificent view of what a futuristic megacity on Earth would look like.

Numerous skyscrapers towered over the raging populace at the bottom.

Dozens of cars, all hovering, drifted through the air. People ran past each other on the streets, sometimes bumping into each other.

Many made their way to the tens of large buses located near the end of the street.

"Oh, I actually had a balcony. Let's head outside, then."

I went away from the window and pushed open the closer of the two doors in the room.

The moment I opened the door, I was assaulted by a refreshing feeling.

The air that I wasn't used to breathing back on Earth seemed so much different. It had this reinvigorating feeling. I couldn't explain it all that well.

This sensation, though… I know this. Not from personal experience, but from knowledge.

"It's mana. I really have reincarnated into my novel."

The way mana worked was this. People would use their breathing to take in the mana in the air.

The mana they absorbed would then be used to power the various… actually, it'd be quicker if I tried it out. Since I can feel mana, that must mean I can also…

"Status."

Much to my surprise, I was almost swept off my feet by what appeared in front of me.

___

Dignitas Qwerdan|

19,M|

Rank: D

ATK: D- DEF: C

AGI: C+ MANA: D

Skills|

Death's Vision| | E |

Will occasionally show the targeted opponent/s next move. The closer they are to death, the more likely their moves are to be true.

___

"That was definitely more overwhelming than what I wrote it to be, sheesh."

I stared at the blue screen that had materialized in front of me. It supposedly showed me what my stats were in this world.

And, wow. I actually have a skill. Not that it's that useful. But at least I have one, hehe.

…I can't actually use it now, though. There aren't any enemies nearby.

Ah, well what should I do now?

I actually got reincarnated into my novel. I'm not quite sure as to what my next course of action should be.

"Hmm…ah, right!"

I didn't finish my story.

At my moment of death, I hadn't been able to finish my novel.

It was because I had taken a short hiatus in order to prepare for the next few arcs of the story.

"As the author, what else should I do besides help finish the story?"

That seemed like my responsibility. And I am quite curious about how some characters in the story are doing.

Especially John.

"That settles it. That's gonna be my goal. I will see the story to it's end. As an author should."

***

My next course of action should be to get some suitable weaponry. If I'm going to interfere with the novel's story, I'm going to need to be able to keep up with the freaks of nature.

Namely, John Ailey.

Being a reincarnator, he most definitely knew the location of key items that would help him get stronger quickly.

Things like skill cards and weapons could be made available to him if he ever so pleased.

But of course, he wouldn't get all of them.

"One weapon comes to mind when I think of it. Dainsleif."

Dainsleif was known to be well known in mythology as a sword that could inflict wounds that would never heal.

I made sure to incorporate that into this world's Dainsleif, as well.

It would be a formiddable weapon if I were to get my hands on it, that's for sure.

"Which means I have to get there before John does."

While John, in the story, did find Dainsleif quite early, he never once used it, ultimately deciding to use the famous Excalibur.

A sword fit for a main character like him, of course.

Surely he wouldn't mind if I took Dainsleif from him.